Paul Draper

As usual, the new Ridge releases are terrific. I tasted the wines over a period of several days and found all of the wines to be very expressive. They are balanced and harmonious just as you would expect from Ridge. Below are notes on the 5 fall releases. Don’t miss them! Following the notes are […]

New Ridge Releases New releases from Ridge are always a treat as this is one winery that only produces gorgeous balanced food friendly wines that can be consumed young and also can age effortlessly for many years. Here is the introduction from my last Ridge article on the fall 2016 releases and ingredient labeling […]

A LEGEND IN HIS TIME Paul Draper, the winemaker and CEO of Ridge Vineyards for nearly 50 years, recently announced his retirement. In my mind Paul was the California wine industry’s guiding force in continuing traditional wine making practices and making consistently great wines during his entire career at Ridge Vineyards. The history of Ridge […]

In my most recent Ridge Vineyards article (click here to read the article on Spring releases and links to all other Ridge Vineyards articles) I said that I would soon be writing about some recent tastings of old Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignons. And, as I have mentioned many times over the years, the […]

The spring releases from Ridge Vineyards are now on the market. And, true to form, the wines are terrific. Most of these wines I tasted on my last visit to Ridge (to read those notes as well as notes on other wines including wines tasted from barrel as well as background information on Ridge and […]

A RECENT VISIT AND SOME REALLY STUNNING WINES I have been visiting Ridge Vineyards since the 60s and writing about them since just before the launch of The Underground Wineletter in 1979. During this entire period I have been buying, cellaring, and drinking Ridge Vineyards wines. They have always given me immense pleasure and […]

Without question, Ridge consistently produces some of the best red wines in California. They have been doing it for over 50 years and have a record that is unmatched by anyone in the state. Here is a history of Ridge taken from one of my earlier Ridge articles: The history of Ridge Vineyards begins in […]

CELEBRATING 50 YEARS: A CALIFORNIA TREASURE On a recent visit to Ridge Vineyards I met with Paul Draper, CEO/Winemaker, and Eric Braugher, VP Wine Making Monte Bello, and tasted some 2011s out of barrel as well as some bottled wines from 2010 back to 1992. The 2011 vintage presented some challenging weather conditions, but, […]

THE MAN AND HIS WINES AND THE CONTINUATION OF HIS VISION Recently, I attended a dinner that featured 17 different wines from Joseph Swan Vineyards. It was organized by The Rare Wine Company with the wines almost entirely from the Joseph Swan Vineyards library. Held at The Murray Circle Restaurant at Cavallo Point in San […]

This case is all about provenance and storage. (To read Dennis Foley’s article on proper wine storage click here) But, despite the long standing belief that the history of the wine (provenance) is the most important thing in evaluating an old wine, it is the thing that most new wine buyers have ignored. This is […]